Being obliged to manure heavily a very sandy soil, and use whatever rich earth I could lay my hands on, the first year of gardening, on a new place, I was, as the spring advanced, terribly annoyed with slugs, cut-worms, and insects of every description; the annuals were destroyed, the young rose leaves pierced and ruined.

I bought eight or nine ducks, such as with us are termed English ducks. Muscovies eat the buds and young shoots and will not answer. I turned these ducks into the garden, giving them a fine run there for three or four months, and assure you that I was perfectly astonished at the success of my happy thought.

It may be urged that the ducks trample down the plants. They may do so in a measure, but the injury does not counterbalance the entire clearing of the garden from all sorts of insect enemies. My roses were fine and remarkably free from blight and insects.